During the process of starting a business, we encountered many difficulties, including two shutdowns. Because we experienced too much, I will not describe them one by one here due to time constraints. During this period, several friends gave me great help, and I have always remembered it in my heart.

This new beginning made me realize that survival is the most important foundation. In 2017, we started to do OEM for the two brands Helinox and Big Agnes, and achieved profitability for the first time at the end of the year.

Every designer or entrepreneur is actually dancing with shackles, especially when creating an original brand, because no one will tell you that the product you design will be recognized by the market, and no one can help you bear the consequences, so you can only judge by yourself which product can meet the needs of users, and then mass produce and sell it. However, if the product is not recognized by the market, the products you make may all be inventory, so innovation actually also means high risk.

Regarding innovation, I think it is a gene that a brand must have. I agree with what Mr. Konosuke Matsushita, the founder of Japan's Panasonic Electric, said: Innovation that is not achieved through self-effort is not real innovation!

So for each product, we are the creator first and the first user. As a creator, I have to experience the work first, especially for products like tents. There will be some physical changes in the indoor and mountain areas and in the alternation of four seasons. I need to check it myself, and constantly test and balance it to lay the foundation for the result.

In the process of branding, another gain is to keep learning and improving myself, and improve my overall quality. I have also changed from a designer to a more comprehensive manager.

Around 2013, we went to Friedrichshafen, Germany to attend an outdoor exhibition. It was my first time to go to Europe. After work during the day, we went to a small restaurant nearby to taste their local delicacies. It was a small shop for roasted pork elbows. I saw their sign at the door.

It roughly means that my grandfather founded the shop in 1940, my father took over the shop and the craft in 1978, and my son became the owner of the shop in 1999, so the shop has been making roasted pork elbows for more than 70 years, and the taste is very delicious.

I chatted with the boss for a few words, and he enjoyed his work and life very much... Later, I saw many small shops with such signs and characteristics, doing one thing for several generations. I wondered if this is the real inheritance we have always talked about?

Of course, making high-quality products in China also means there are many difficulties. Most partners like to cooperate with big international brands because they will get big orders and maximize their profits. However, if you cooperate with a dedicated brand like us, there will not be big orders, and we also have high requirements for quality, which means we are helping them improve their quality. This often requires a lot of energy to repeatedly emphasize the details of the cooperation.

Because each supplier has different standards for products, for example, 70D nylon 66 + silver coating, and 7D nylon 66 double-sided silicon coating, require high density to ensure tear strength, so many Chinese suppliers can't achieve this quality at all. Some netizens even asked us why we don't use products from Chinese suppliers. It's true that Chinese suppliers can't meet our standards.

We also purchased YKK frosted zippers from Japan instead of using products from Chinese YKK factories. They can't make these highest quality products (or the factories in China may not use the best machines); quality is a whole manifestation, not just a famous accessory in a certain part.

So our positioning is not to be the largest tent brand, but to strive for the best.